Martial Arts Over 40

Alive and Kicking!

  • HOME
  • Fitness
    • Weight, Diet and Nutrition
    • Injuries
  • Inspiration
    • Alive and Kicking
    • Beginners Corner
    • Readers’ Stories
  • Recommended
  • About
  • Facebook
60-year old Martial Artist Teaches Art of Peace

60-year old Martial Artist Teaches Art of Peace

July 24, 2012 By Brett Kraiger

Even now, many people are still confused as to the purpose and goal of martial arts. Some people consider martial arts as only a form of violence. Because almost all forms of martial art involve physical contact, people may equate martial arts to violent behaviour. But we know nothing can be further from the truth.

A man like John Smartt, 60-year old Aikido teacher, who has trained and taught Aikido for more than 41 years can definitely prove this misconception wrong. As a matter of fact, Aikido in itself is translated to “an art of peace”. Mr. Smartt said the following statements about Aikido when he sat down in an interview with redcordnet.com.

“Self-defense is the by-product of doing it, not the focus of aikido,” Smartt said. “At the low end, (aikido philosophy) is ‘do no harm.’ At the upper end, it’s ‘love.’ The purpose of learning it is to love and be loved.”

“One of his main reasons for (Morihei, creator of Aikido) learning all this stuff was to right injustice,” Smartt said. “What he was told was, ‘You’re a great martial artist. Why not figure out the source of what true safety is.’ Aikido is the result of his figuring it out.”

 

Related posts:

Moriteru Ueshiba: On Transmitting the Essence of Aikido Interview With A Senior Citizen Martial Artist Unique group for elderly women practising the art of Japanese Aikido is the only one of its kind in the world Starting a Martial Art in Mid-Life? Pick One That Fits You

Filed Under: Blog, Inspiration

OLD FARTS MARTIAL ARTS

Come and join our Facebook Group "Old Farts Martial Arts". It's a closed group so anything you share in the group stays in the group.

A great bunch of like-minded people with similar goals, fears and challenges!

Click here to join.

Recommended

Mark Cook – “The Perfect Age”

In an online discussion a while back a person lamented to me, "I always … [Read More...]

Knowing Your Motivations Before Martial Arts Training

Undergoing martial arts training has a lot of advantages. In fact, many … [Read More...]

Just earned my black belt

Learning How To Fly – My Test For Black Belt – Kristina Selting

The first email I got from Kristina Selting was soon after she found … [Read More...]

Contact Us | Terms | Privacy Policy